DISCLAIMER: I do not own any of these characters. All of it belongs to JK Rowling (my queen).

Rewrite of chapter from a year ago. A little better now I think :)


HOGWARTS

Chapter Two: Lemon Juice

Lily was a romantic at heart. She liked to believe that nobody saw past the 'in control' exterior she attempted to build. She was great when she was in control, sure. Her partner in any class was lucky to have her, the teachers adored her, and she could silence a room with a single look. She always had a professional exterior, an aura of control of herself and those around her, the possession of the power to walk into the room and have it go quiet. She was a born leader.

But catching Lily when she was being a little softer? The charcoal sketch version of the usual Technicolor cartoon Lily? That was a real treat.

It would be on the most random of days. She would smile sweetly at the close-to-useless Hufflepuff she got paired up with in Herbology, she'd point a lost first-year in the right direction, she'd bring a copy of some dog-eared poetry book to every class, and it would sit at the corner of her desk until Sirius Black or James Potter picked it up and flicked through it (it was usually the latter that did so, but that's only because he'd want to find an excuse to talk to her).

And long warm afternoons where she could bask all day in the sun in the garden, that's what Lily loved almost as much as her time in Hogwarts. That's how she spent most of the summer, with a great big floppy hat in to prevent her face freckling. She'd read 15 books that summer, beating her record from third year. Most of them were Muggle classics, her guilty pleasure. She found herself waltzing around her room one night after dinner, clutching her paperback copy of Pride and Prejudice, hoping her own Mr. Darcy would sweep into the room and whirl her around in a steady waltz.

She was glad to have these drowsy days that summer; lost in someone else's world, as her own was accelerating at lightning speed. Although Petunia and her insufferable fiancée were staying in the Evans' home, same as Lily, Petunia did her best to avoid her. This entitled many family outings (not including Lily, of course, in case she accidentally forgot Vernon was there, and performed some magic), so Lily had the days to herself. However, as August drew to a close and the heady hot days melted into cool nights, her mother would stay home with her, baking pies and braiding her long ginger hair and listening to her rant about Sev. Admittedly, she'd tried pretending to herself that the whole awful incident hadn't happened, but it was therapeutic in a way to just cry out of frustration on her mum's shoulder.

So now, as she stood on Platform 9 and ¾, her face just a little bit tanned from the rays that had poked through her hat, her trunk full of books and clothes and hopes for the coming year, she stepped onto the train and-

Right into James Potter.

Her mood was immediately ruined.

"Whoa. Hello there, Evans. Good summer?" James' body stretched out like a cat's. His arm immediately was propped against the frame of the door into the carriage, his torso lengthened, his legs crossed. He smiles at her, still waiting for a response, and she sighs.

She runs a hand through her hair.

And then she stops.

Because she's done it. And she can't take it back. She's done his signature move- the hand through shaggy hair trick. And he knows it as well.

"Fine. Some drama with Petunia, lots of reading, and a little sun." She answers, trying to keep her voice steady. James has changed his position again, his shoulders hunched so he is almost at her height, hands stuffed in pockets.

"Or a lot of sun." He reaches out and pokes her nose fondly. Lily wonders if there's a sunburn she hadn't noticed there.

There's an awkward pause as she agonizes over what to say next. Fortunately, she doesn't have to say anything, because at that moment, three Marauders and two extremely brown Gryffindor girls squeeze themselves into the carriage, nearly knocking over James and Lily in the process. They shuffle to accommodate the new arrivals, and Lily realizes just how awkward and clunky her case is. She sets it down.

"For Merlin's sake, don't stand and chat right by the door, you can catch up on your summers elsewhere-" A decidedly handsome boy with pearl grey eyes and long brown hair complains, but stops short when he realizes who he's talking to.

"Prongsy! There you are, we were looking for you." Sirius Black says, pulling up a tall, lanky, sandy-brown haired boy and short chubby blonde boy beside him. The tall boy waves to Lily, and she can't wait to catch up with him- Remus Lupin is the most normal out of all the Marauders in Lily's opinion, and being a Prefect with him made her realize how much they had in common.

They'll catch up at the Prefect meeting, she decides.

Right now, she worries herself with the two girls. They both rush forward to embrace her, both smelling very strongly of lavender.

"Lily Lily Lily, my darling Lily. How was you summer?" The blonde one asks, as soon as they pull apart. She's wearing round-rimmed sunglasses, her hair is shorter and lighter, and she looks absolutely fantastic. Lily glances at Sirius, who is gazing at the back of Marlene's (the blonde) head, grey eyes cloudy. He notices Lily looking, and they clear. He turns back to the other three boys.

"Fine, fine, lovely. I'll tell you all about my exciting escapades with my book collection later. But you! Your hair! Did you dye it?" Lily says, reaching out her hand.

Marlene Price reaches up as well. She ruffles it. "Going for a different look. Picked it up in Spain… no more smooth and sleek, I need texture. And lemon juice in your hair, plus the sun, makes it lighter. And I also-"

"Blah blah blah, Marlene, let me speak to her, for Agrippa's sake! Go find a compartment with the boys." Mary Macdonald interrupts.

Marlene laughs, pushes her sunglass off her face and into her hair, and gestures for the boys to follow her. "Come on then, troublemakers." She says. Peter Pettigrew seems all too happy to comply, shouldering his full-to-bursting knapsack and dragging his trunk along behind him. Remus scoots a little closer to Lily, knowing they have to get to the Prefect compartment before the train sets off. James picks up his trunk and makes to follow Marlene and Peter, and is almost past Lily and Mary when he notices Sirius is not following him.

'C'mon, Padfoot. There's adventures to be had and Fizzing Whizbees to eat and firewhisky to get day drunk on.' He beckons. Marlene and Peter stop and turn. Sirius glances from James to Peter and Marlene, in that order, pausing slightly on the latter, then shakes his head. 'In a minute. I need to… ask Moony something.' Sirius answers.

James stalls for a moment, then shrugs. 'See you in a bit.' He shoulders one of his bags. 'Later, Evans.' He throws over his shoulder and joins Marlene and Peter, who push through the door to the next compartment.

'Merlin, what happened between Marlene and Sirius?' Lily whispers to Mary as soon as they've gone, conscious of the Black boy being just a foot away, talking hurriedly to Moony.

"Sirius? Nothing, that I know of. Marlene and I were together almost the whole summer. Oh, it was amazing, Lils, I wish you could've come.'

'My parents, unfortunately, care about me far too much to let me disappear for an entire summer to a hot foreign country with plenty of young available boys… speaking of which… how was it?' Lily giggled eagerly.

'Fantastico.For Marlene especially. She got with this really fit Muggle in Valencia, though he barley spoke English. She told me that he really liked to do this thing where- '

She is interrupted by Sirius clearing his throat. 'Later, Moony.' He says simply, and is gone. Mary watches him go, and continues once he disappears into the next carriage.

"That trip was a real eye-opener for her… she chopped off her hair, she kissed boys she'd just met, she had fun. It's what she needed." Mary replies.

Lily nods, pressing her lips together. The year before, Marlene had gone through a very nasty breakup, and all of her friends were wondering when she was going to be happy again.

Mary hadn't changed a bit over summer, which was comfort to Lily, as she hoped she hadn't been the only one who'd tried a drastic change.

"Alright, Mac, let's find where those crazies went off to." Lily throws her arm over Mary's shoulders.

"What about Doe? And Alice and Frank?" Mary asks, her brunette ponytail bobbing.

"We saw Doe arriving. I'm sure she'll be here soon." Remus cuts in, having waited patiently for the girls. "And Alice and Frank are one cabin down, they'll be joining us later. You coming to the Prefect cabin, Lily?" He asks. His hair had grown out, and it curling at the ends.

"I'll be there in a tic, just want to change and catch up a bit." Lily answers, picking up her case again.

"See you in a bit then." And he's disappeared the other way, towards the cabin which holds all the Prefects.

Lily turns, smiles, and tugs Mary's hand in the direction whence Marlene and Adam went. "So, what was this Spanish boy's name?" She begins.


HI EVERYONE! I'm so sorry... I went on an almost-year long hiatus... I just didn't feel like writing, so I'm sorry. But summer always brings out the Jily mood in me (I think because I have more time to write)... I replaced this chapter with a rewrite, cutting a character (that wasn't mine in the first place) and I'll be adding a few more in the coming chapters (ohh exciting...). Keep up with my on { .com}, my jily blog, or { .com}, my main blog.

Lots of love! xx Mica